Crime & Safety

Missing and Wanted: Authorities Seek Clues to 2006 Murder of Encinitas Woman

Sibyl Robbins died in the driveway of her home, shot to death by a waiting gunman.

By Christine Huard

On a spring night in 2006, an evening out turned to horror when a gunman opened fire on an Encinitas couple, killing the woman and seriously injuring her husband in the driveway of their home.

Sibyl Robbins was pronounced dead at the scene, shot to death in the passenger seat of the couple’s Volvo sedan. Her husband, Harrison, was shot in the face and recovered physically from the injury. Speaking to a reporter in 2011, however, he was far from being healed emotionally.

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“I lost a part of myself when she died,” he said on the eve of the five-year anniversary of his wife’s murder. According to Sheriff’s homicide investigators, the killer has not been caught and the motive for the ambush remains unclear.

Sheriff’s homicide Sgt. Roy Frank told the North County Times two years ago that investigators believe Sibyl Robbins was targeted, and that there is good forensic evidence in the case. 

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But authorities need the public’s help. Frank said he hopes residents who saw something out of place in the hours or days before the Robbinses were attacked will come forward.

Sibyl Robbins was killed about 10:30 p.m. May 12, 2006, in the driveway of her home in the 1800 block of Bel Air Terrace, Encinitas. Authorities believe a gunman was waiting for the Robbinses when they returned from an evening out.

Anyone with information to offer is asked to contact authorities:

—Sheriffi’s Homicide Detail at 858-974-2321 during business hours

—Sheriff’s Communications Center at 858-565-5200 after hours

—Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477

—Or, by using the Crime Stoppers online tip form.

About this series:

Scores of cases throughout San Diego County go unsolved by local law enforcement investigators each year. A teen thought to be a runaway has still not come home. A dangerous parolee goes missing. A parent in a custody dispute kidnaps the children. A family member who is homeless and mentally ill disappears off the street. A loved one is murdered and there are few clues or no suspect.

No matter what the circumstances, police and relatives continue to search for those who are missing and wanted. They want the son, sister, or husband home. They want justice for the victims of crimes. They want the bad guys behind bars.

Each day in October, our Patch sites will feature a different person who is missing and wanted in San Diego County. Look at their pictures. Have you seen them? Do you have information that might help them be located?

Each profile will have a phone number for you to call to provide information. Let’s help investigators close these cases!


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